My Silkie Hen Went Bald!! HELP!

[BarredRockMommy]

What happened to her? Is this just a Silkie thing? Because none of my other hens have bald spots. Its just on her head. Sorry I'm just really worried about her. She is our friendliest chicken, she comes to her name, and snuggles. We would be devastasted if something happened to her.

Here is what she normally looks like:

Sorry, its a really bad pic!

 

[BarredRockMommy]

Oops did not mean to post that twice! How do you delete a thread?

 

[BIggoMamma]

If she was not always bald but lost her feathers on her head, make certain her flock mates are not pulling her "hair" out being a bully. I have observed this behavior before-kinda like hair pulling. Check and see if it is mites, take her to the local coop and show them and ask, or vets. Buy vitamin mix for the water from the coop/feed store as zinc and other vitamins when deficient can make feathers fall out.

 

[BarredRockMommy]

My Lakenvelder , Lightning, has mites. Is their any homemade remedies that worked for any of you guys?

 

[aart]

My Lakenvelder , Lightning, has mites. Is their any homemade remedies that worked for any of you guys?

Don't mess around with DIY if you have mites...go right for the effective treatments.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1134783/permethrin-spray

 

[rebrascora]

Are you sure it is mites or could it be lice, there is a significant difference.

Mites live in the crevices of the coop and crawl along the roosts and onto the chickens at night and suck their blood, this can cause anaemia and possibly even spread disease, so it is a potential health risk.

Lice live on the chicken and are more of an irritant than a serious health threat. They live off dead skin and dander debris (they don't suck blood) and healthy chickens are usually able to keep them in check by regular dust bathing... unless there is no suitable dust bathing facility available.

Knowing which pest/parasite is the problem is helpful in how you treat it although both can be treated with the same chemicals, obviously the coop needs to be the main target when treating mites, whereas the chickens need to be more of the focus of treatment if the problem is lice.

 

[drumstick diva]

Could she have skin trouble? Do chickens get mange?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

As previous posters have mentioned, observe your flock to see if anyone is picking her clean. Checking her over well for lice/mites is a very good idea. If you have one that has crawling critters, then most likely they all do.

Clean out your coop and treat it with an appropriate product designed for using with poultry. Use poultry dust or spray to treat your whole flock. Treatment should be repeated in 7days to kill any nits that have hatched.

For your Silkie's exposed skin you can apply an anti-fungal cream or A+D ointment to help soothe the skin.

Here's another thread about products that can be used on poultry:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1151513/pesticides-approved-for-poultry